6.  The applicant was born in 1959 and is currently serving his prison sentence in the Jēkabpils Prison.
7.  On 18 November 2000 the applicant was arrested and taken into custody on suspicion of rape of a minor female, aged fourteen, and unauthorised acquisition, storage and conveyance of narcotic substances.
8.  On 21 November 2000, on the application of a police officer in charge of the investigation of the applicant's case, a judge of the Zemgale District Court of the City of Rīga, taking into consideration the oral submissions of the police officer and the applicant's lawyer, decided to detain the applicant on remand. The judge filled in a standard form by writing in the date, her name, the applicant's name and other details of the case. In substantiating the decision, the judge had to select and underline the pre-typed text of the standard form which she considered to be relevant to the case. She took into account the severity of the crime of which the applicant was suspected, his personality, the danger of his absconding and the possibility that he could impede the investigation. It was not indicated in the decision until which date the applicant should remain in detention. According to the copy of the decision, the applicant was not present. He did not appeal against the decision.
9.  On 15 December 2000 the applicant's case was transferred to the Rīga Court Regional Prosecutor's Office.
10.  On 10 January 2001, on the application of a prosecutor of the Rīga Court Regional Prosecutor's Office, a judge of the Zemgale District Court of the City of Rīga, taking into consideration the oral submissions of the prosecutor, extended the applicant's detention on remand until 15 March 2001. Neither the applicant nor his lawyer appeared before the judge. In substantiating the decision, the judge took into account the severity of the crime with which the applicant was charged, his four previous convictions, the danger of his absconding and re-offending and the possibility that he could impede the investigation. The applicant did not appeal against this decision.
11.  On 5 March 2001, on the application of a prosecutor of the Rīga Court Regional Prosecutor's Office, a judge of the Zemgale District Court of the City of Rīga, considering the oral submissions of the prosecutor, the gravity of the crime with which the applicant was charged, the fact that he had a criminal record, the danger of his absconding and continuing criminal offences, prolonged the applicant's detention on remand until 15 May 2001. Neither the applicant nor his lawyer appeared before the judge. The applicant appealed against this decision, asserting that the case-file contained no proper evidence of his guilt.
12.  On 24 April 2001, according to the materials in the case file, the Riga Regional Court dismissed the applicant's appeal, finding that his detention was lawful inter alia under Article 77 of the Law on Criminal Procedure. The court considered that the gravity of the crime with which the applicant was charged and the fact that he had four previous convictions confirmed the existence of a risk of his absconding, re-offending and perverting the course of justice. The applicant was present at the hearing. The decision was not subject to a further appeal.
13.  On 31 May 2001 the final bill of indictment was presented to the applicant. He was charged with rape of a female minor, aged fourteen, and unauthorised acquisition, storage and conveyance of narcotic substances in large amounts. On the same day the case was transferred to the Rīga Regional Court for adjudication.
14.  On 4 June 2001 a judge of the Rīga Regional Court committed the applicant for trial and, considering that the preventive measure had been chosen appropriately, decided that his “remand shall remain unchanged”. The decision was not subject to appeal.
15.  On 1 November 2002 paragraph 7 of Article 77 of the Criminal Procedure Code entered into force and a judge of the Rīga Regional Court sent the applicant's criminal case to the Senate of the Supreme Court, requesting the extension of the applicant's detention on remand for a further six months.
16.  On 1 November 2002 the Senate of the Supreme Court decided to extend the applicant's detention on remand until 1 May 2003. In substantiating its decision, the court took into account the gravity of the crime with which the applicant was charged and the danger of his absconding and re-offending. The decision was not subject to appeal. Neither the applicant nor his lawyer was present.
17.  On 18 November 2000, upon the applicant's arrest, the victim identified him in the presence of two police officers as the perpetrator of the rape. On his arrest, the applicant was searched and five polyethylene pouches with a white powdery substance were seized and sent to a forensic expert. On the same day the victim was questioned and her statement accusing the applicant of raping her was written down. Her underwear was seized as evidence and sent for forensic tests. The applicant was interrogated as a suspect; however, he refused to give any statement in the absence of a lawyer.
18.  On 19 November 2000 the victim underwent a gynaecological forensic examination, by which it was established that she could have had sexual intercourse on the previous day in the alleged circumstances. The expert noted that she had a bruise on her left thigh and vaginal bruising.
19.  On 19 November 2000 the applicant was subjected to a forensic and physical examination. It was established that he had several bruises which could be the result of the victim's resistance and could have been inflicted in the circumstances described by the victim (paragraph 32, below). It was also established that the applicant could have had sexual intercourse on 18 November 2000.
20.  On 21 November 2000 the applicant was questioned in the presence of a lawyer. He refused to give any statement until the completion of the pre-trial investigation.
21.  From 21 to 28 November 2000 the victim, diagnosed as being in a post-traumatic reactive condition, underwent medical treatment in the Child Clinical University Hospital.
22. On 27 November 2000 the State Forensic Expertise Centre delivered the results inter alia of the forensic examination of the victim's underwear. Semen was found on them, containing the so-called A antigen, which was characteristic to the applicant. The results of the tests did not exclude that it was the applicant's semen on the victim's underwear.
23.  On 30 November 2000 the victim was questioned again. She fully confirmed her previous statements, giving further details.
24.  On 15 December 2000 the Centre of Forensic Expertise of the Ministry of the Interior delivered the results of the forensic tests on the powdery substance seized from the applicant. It was identified as heroin.
25.  On 20 December 2000 the applicant was questioned; however, he refused to give a statement.
26.  On 28 December 2000 the applicant was questioned again but he refused to give any statement in the absence of a lawyer.
27.  On 23 February 2001, on the request of the prosecutor in charge of the investigation of the case, a psychiatric expert from the Psychiatry Centre examined the victim. It was established inter alia that she was able to assess and understand the relevant facts of the case correctly, that she did not have a tendency to imagine or fabricate the events and that the rape had affected her psyche, causing sleep disturbance, disturbing memories and neurotic tensions. The expert confirmed that the victim's appearance before the court would involve a danger to her health, as she had suffered from a psychological trauma and her health would most likely again deteriorate if she were to be confronted with the applicant.
28.  On 16 March 2001 the applicant was acquainted with the results of the tests relating to the case. He refused to sign the respective records but he did not submit any petitions or complaints regarding the expert opinions.
29.  On 27 April 2001 the applicant was charged with having committed rape of a minor female and unauthorised storage of narcotic substances. He did not plead guilty to having committed the rape and submitted that he had not been duly acquainted with the relevant materials of the case. He alleged that he had just touched the victim in order to locate his allegedly stolen wallet.
30.  On 9 May 2001 the victim was questioned in respect of the applicant's submissions regarding his allegedly stolen wallet. She stated that the applicant had not asked any of the persons present in the car on 18 November 2000 about the wallet.
31.  Between 10 and 30 May 2001 the applicant was given the opportunity to take cognisance of the case materials. He was assisted by a lawyer. He refused, without stating any reasons, to examine the case documents on 25, 29 and 30 May 2001.
32.  On 31 May 2001 the final bill of indictment was presented to the applicant. It contained the statements given by the victim, according to which her two girlfriends, A.K. and H.K., two men, R.P. and S.G., the applicant and she herself were drinking alcohol in a parked car on 18 November 2000. At some point the applicant told the others, except the victim, to leave the car. After they left, the applicant hit the victim in the face at least three times and raped her. Trying to defend herself, she hit the applicant several times on his head with an empty bottle and on his back with a wooden bar. After the rape, the victim left the car and went to a public phone to call the police. On her way she met R.P. When the police officers arrived, they went with the victim to an apartment where she identified the applicant as the person who had raped her. The following witness statements and the results of the tests were included in the bill of indictment:
(a)  According to the witness statement of R.P., he confirmed the consumption of alcohol on 18 November 2000, the persons present and the fact that the victim had told him that she had been raped by the applicant and that he had suggested to her that she should call the police;
(b)  H.K. confirmed the consumption of alcohol in the car and the persons present, and stated that the applicant had harassed the victim before he ordered the others to leave the car, after which he had stayed there alone with the victim;
(c)  A.K. confirmed the events of 18 November 2000 as stated by the victim; she also stated that the victim had told her that the applicant had hit her several times and that she had told her later that the applicant had raped her;
(d)  V.L. stated that on 18 November 2000 he had met the victim near the public phone and she had told him that she had been raped;
(e)  one of the policemen confirmed that the victim had, in his and his colleague's presence, identified the applicant upon his arrest as the person who had raped her;
(f)  the victim's father testified that he had been told by his daughter that the applicant had raped her and that she had bruises on her face and suffered from post-traumatic stress;
(g)  there were statements of a general nature from five other witnesses (including V.B. – the owner of the house next to which the alleged events of 18 November 2000 took place – who stated that she knew the applicant and the victim and had seen them both on 18 November 2000 and that she had been present during the applicant's arrest) relating inter alia to the circumstances of the applicant's arrest, the fact that he had consumed narcotic substances, his characteristics and an opinion of the drug expert describing heroin;
(h)  the results of the relevant tests (paragraphs 18, 19, 22, 24 and 27, above) were also included.
33.  According to the bill of indictment, it was decided not to summon the victim for participation in the court hearing, pursuant to the expert opinion (paragraph 27, above). The list of the persons who had to be summoned included all the persons whose testimonies were included in the bill of indictment, i.e. the victim's father, R.P., H.K., A.K., V.L., the other five witnesses, the policeman and the drug expert who produced the expert opinion. Other experts were not included in the list. S.G. was not included in the list; according to the report of a police officer acting on the prosecutor's order, he had tried to locate S.G. unsuccessfully several times.
34.  On 31 May 2001 the case was transferred to the Rīga Regional Court for adjudication.
35.  On 4 June 2001 a judge of the Rīga Regional Court committed the applicant for trial, without scheduling the trial date.
36.  The first hearing was set for 2 July 2002.
37.  On 1 July 2002 one of the witnesses in the applicant's case – the drug expert – informed the court that she could not attend the hearing.
38.  On 2 July 2002 the Rīga Regional Court opened the hearing of the applicant's case. It examined the applicant's allegations that he was not duly acquainted with the materials of the case and found them manifestly ill-founded, as the applicant had taken cognisance of the case between 10 and 30 May 2000. The hearing was adjourned due to the absence of witnesses; only one of all the summoned witnesses, V.L., had arrived. The court, on the applicant and his lawyer's request, decided to summon the gynaecologist and psychiatrist who had examined the victim and delivered their expert opinions and an additional witness S., who had not given a witness statement during the pre-trial investigation and whose whereabouts and surname the applicant did not know. The applicant did not indicate what facts their testimonies could prove or how they could corroborate the position of the defence.
39.  On 7 July 2002 the applicant addressed the Rīga Regional Court, reiterating his motion to summon the witness S. and one of the witnesses questioned during the pre-trial investigation, V.B., as well as the psychiatric expert who had examined the victim, without indicating what facts their testimonies could prove or how they could corroborate the position of the defence.
40.  On 9 September 2002 the Rīga Regional Court informed the applicant that the witnesses and the expert requested by him would be summoned for the next hearing.
41.  On 17 March 2003 the Rīga Regional Court sent summonses to the witnesses in the applicant's case.
42.  On 24 March 2003 the hearing of the applicant's case was resumed. The parties were asked whether in the absence of most witnesses the hearing could take place. The parties left the decision to the court. Two witnesses were heard before the adjournment of the hearing with a view to ensuring the attendance of other witnesses. The Rīga Regional Court ordered the police to ensure the appearance of the remaining witnesses on 25 March 2003. The hearing continued on the next day. According to the case materials, the police established that H.K., the applicant's father and one of the witnesses who had testified during the pre-trial investigation on the drug charges against the applicant had changed their places of residence and their whereabouts were unknown. It remains unclear whether the police tried to locate and to establish the whereabouts of the remaining witnesses.
43.  On 26 March 2003 R.P. informed the court that he had left Rīga and moved to another city and therefore could not attend the hearing.
44.  On 27 March 2003 the applicant was found guilty of the rape of a female minor, aged fourteen, and unauthorised acquisition, storage and conveyance of narcotic substances in large amounts. He was sentenced to eight years' imprisonment. According to the judgment, the applicant (as established by the court, a person who had previously committed rape), the victim, her two girlfriends and two men were drinking alcohol in a parked car on 18 November 2000. At some point the applicant told the others, except the victim, to leave the car. After they left, the applicant hit the victim in the face at least three times and raped her. The victim had tried to protect herself by hitting the applicant several times on his head and his back. The court also established that the applicant had unlawfully acquired, stored and conveyed 1.5623 grams of heroin. The applicant was represented by defence counsel throughout the proceedings.
45.  In finding the applicant guilty of the rape charge, the Rīga Regional Court relied on the incriminating statements of the victim and her father and on the witness statements of R.P., V.L. and A.K. recorded during the pre-trial investigation. The court heard a policeman who was on duty at the material time. He stated that the victim had reported to the police that the applicant had raped her and had identified him upon his arrest. In establishing the facts, the court further had regard to the expert opinions on the results of the tests carried out during the pre-trial investigation, on-site inspection reports (for instance, according to the police report, the victim's glasses, one of her socks and a wooden bar had been found in the car) and documentary evidence.
46.  In finding the applicant guilty of unauthorised acquisition, storage and conveyance of narcotic substances, the court relied on the statements given during the trial by one witness, the applicant's daughter, who testified that she had been aware that the applicant had been using narcotic drugs, and on the written opinion of the drug expert that the powder seized during the applicant's arrest was heroin. The court further referred to the statements of one witness during the pre-trial investigation. According to him, upon the applicant's arrest a powdery substance had been found on him.
47.  According to the minutes of the hearing, the court decided that it was not necessary to summon the gynaecologist and psychiatrist who had delivered their expert opinions. It considered that their opinions were detailed enough and the applicant had not stated any additional question he would like to put to the experts. The court also considered it unnecessary to summon the witnesses requested by the applicant on 7 July 2002, as they could not submit any new unknown facts. The court also rejected the proposal of the applicant's lawyer to summon the victim for examination, as she had been recommended not to attend the hearing in the case.
48.  On 10 April 2003 the applicant submitted an appeal on points of law, without complaining about the first instance court's refusal to summon the witnesses requested by him and without requesting that any additional witnesses be summoned for examination.
49.  On 12 May 2003 the applicant applied to the Senate of the Supreme Court, requesting that the witness V.B. who had testified during the pre-trial investigation be summoned.
50.  On 13 May 2003 the applicant applied to the Senate of the Supreme Court, requesting that the victim be subjected to new psychological and psychiatric tests. According to him, the state of the victim's mental health before 18 November 2000 should be established; however, he did not state how it could corroborate the position of the defence.
51.  On 13 May 2003 the Senate of the Supreme Court reviewed the case through the procedure of cassation only to the extent that it concerned the alleged violations of the law on criminal procedure and dismissed this part of the appeal. The Senate subsequently referred the case to the Criminal Chamber of the Supreme Court for adjudication of complaints subject to review by way of the appeal procedure.
52.  On 2 June 2003 the applicant applied to the Criminal Chamber of the Supreme Court, requesting that unspecified witnesses who could give “concrete” statements concerning his case be summoned and examined.
53.  On 11 December 2003, during the hearing, the Criminal Chamber of the Supreme Court heard the applicant and reassessed the evidence obtained during the pre-trial investigation. The appeal court confirmed the judgment of the first instance court, holding it to be lawful, well-founded and sufficiently reasoned. The court established that the first instance court had thoroughly analysed the evidence available and expressly indicated in its judgment which facts it considered to have been established as well as the reasons for its conclusions, which did not need reassessment. The applicant was represented by defence counsel throughout the proceedings.
54.  On 3 March 2004 the applicant submitted an appeal on points of law. He alleged various breaches of substantive and procedural law. He complained inter alia that his requests to have witnesses and experts summoned had been rejected.
55.  On 22 March 2004 the Senate of the Supreme Court dismissed the applicant's appeal on points of law as manifestly ill-founded at a sitting held in camera. It considered that the applicant had not demonstrated the existence of arguable grounds which would justify holding a hearing in the cassation proceedings. The Senate concluded that the applicant's guilt had been sufficiently established on the basis of the extensive testimony given by the victim during the pre-trial investigation, which had been corroborated by other evidence confirming his guilt. As to the applicant's complaint about the refusal of the first and second instance courts to summon witnesses, the court noted that he had failed to specify which particular facts would have been clarified by hearing the witnesses. The court considered that the evidence against the applicant was to a large extent based on the incriminating statements of the victim, who rightly had not been summoned due to the psychologist's recommendations. However, these statements were examined and objectively assessed by the courts. In addition, there was sufficient evidence proving the applicant's guilt. The Senate considered that the applicant had asked that circumstances which were not relevant to the case be established. The Senate did not establish any violations of procedural and substantive law which would have hindered the thorough, complete and objective investigation of the case.